Ice crusher

ABSTRACT

Ice crusher apparatus provided with a plurality of closure members for the feed opening thereof. Two of the members are hingedly attached adjacent the upper end of the feed opening and are spring biased such that one member registers with the opening while the other one is away from the opening. A third closure member is hinged along the lower edge of the opening and is capable of assuming a substantially horizontal position for serving as a shelf for supporting ice to be fed into the crusher. The member biased away from the opening serves as a pusher door which moves the ice from the shelf through the opening while preventing entry of the fingers into the crusher and rendering the crusher capable of chain feeding. The door normally biased into registry with the opening prevents ice chips from flying out of the ice crusher opening when the chain feeding is not employed.

United States Patent 2,899,140 8/l959 Hellyer FOREIGN PATENTS 1,240,906 8/1960 France ABSTRACT: Ice crusher apparatus provided with a plurality of closure members for the feed opening thereof. Two of the members are hingedly attached adjacent the upper end of the feed opening and are spring biased such that one member registers with the opening while the other one is away from the opening. A third closure member is hinged along the lower edge of the opening and is capable of assuming a substantially horizontal position for serving as a shelf for supporting ice to be fed into the crusher. The member biased away from the opening serves as a pusher door which moves the ice from the shelf through the opening while preventing entry of the fingers into the crusher and rendering the crusher capable of chain feeding. The door normally biased into registry with the opening prevents ice chips from flying out of the ice crusher opening when the chain feeding is not employed.

PATENIED JUN29 |97l FIG. 4.

lIClE CRUSH-KER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates, in general, to domestic appliances and, more particularly, to ice crushers for use in the home.

Chain feeding of ice chunks or ice cubes into an ice crushing mechanism is quite desirable since a force can be exerted on the last in the chain which force is transmitted to the first in the chain. However, chain feeding of ice chunks or cubes is not compatible with prior art constructions since ice particles are thrown back toward the opening, thereby creating a messy and sometimes hazardous situation.

The foregoing situation has been remedied to a satisfactory degree by the provision of a closure member mounted just inside the opening and bias means for retaining the closure member in registry with the opening after a chunk of ice has been fed through the opening. It will be appreciated that chain feeding would defeat the purpose of the closure member.

Accordingly, the general object of this invention is to provide a new and improved ice crusher.

It is a more particular object of this invention to provide, in an ice crusher, means for supporting ice outside of the crusher and means cooperating therewith to push the ice through the feed opening of the device and to also prevent insertion of the fingers into the crushing area.

' BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Briefly, the above-cited objects are accomplished by the provision of a pusher door hingedly attached to an ice crusher housing adjacent the feed opening thereof. The pusher door is spring biased to a nonclosing position and serves through normal manipulation thereof to push ice chunks supported on a substantially horizontally disposed closure door. The pusher door serves to prevent insertion of the fingers through the feed opening and to allow chain feeding of the ice without the heretofore adverse effects mentioned previously.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent when considered in view of the following detailed description and drawings forming a part of this specification.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of an ice crusher representing an improved construction over the prior art;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on line II-Il of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial view similar to FIG. 2, but with the feed opening, closure member, in different positions; and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged partial view similar to FIG. 1 but with the feed opening and closure member in different positions and a portion broken away for clarity.

Referring now to the drawings, especially FIGS. 1 and 2, reference character designates generally an ice crusher comprising casing or housing structure 11. A chute or ice crushing area 12, delineated by a front wall 13, a rear wall 14 and sidewall 16, provides communication between a feed opening 17 and a crushed-ice collecting area 18 having a removable drawer 19 disposed therein. The drawer 119, made from any suitable transparent material, for example plastic, serves as a container for removing the crushed ice and because of its transparent nature the ice can be seen through the front wall thereof, but the area llfi is hidden from view when the drawer is empty.

A rotary blade structure generally indicated at 21 is positioned within the chute 12 and is operable, in a manner well known to those skilled in the art, to crush ice. The blade structure 21 includes a shaft 22 which is coupled, through the wall 14, to the rotor of an electric motor 23.

To prevent ice chips from flying out through the opening 117,21 trap door 24 (FIG. 2) is pivotally mounted by means ofa rod 25 adjacent the top edge of the opening but just rearwardly of the wall 13, such that its lower edge abuts the wall 13 at the bottom of the opening 17. To ensure functioning of the trap door in the intended manner, it is biased to its closing position by means ofa spring 26 (FIG. 4), however, it is movable to the dotted line position, illustrated in FIG. 3, upon insertion of a cube of ice.

A closure door structure 27, pivotally mounted along its lower edge, adjacent the lower edge of the opening 17, as by a hinge pin 15 connecting a sidewall 31 of the door to the housing 11, serves in its open position (FIG. 3) as a shelf to support a chunk ofice for movement through the opening 17. A pushbutton 28, extending through the top wall of the casing structure Illl, cooperates with a suitable latch mechanism, not shown, for locking and unlocking the closure door 27 so that it can be moved from its closing position (FIG. 2) to open position (FIG. 3). The button 28 also cooperates with a suitable switch, also not shown, for energizing the motor 23.

The switch and latch mechanism work through a tab 29, operatively connected to the switch and manually operable by the button 28, received in a slot 30 in the sidewall 31 of door structure 27 to function in a manner described in detail in US. Pat. No. 3,379,382 issued Apr. 23, 1968 to .I. E. Briar et al.

A pusher door structure 34 is also pivotally mounted on the rod 25, and is biased by means of a spring such that it assumes the position shown in FIG. 3, permitting access to the openings, when the door structure 27 occupies its open position. The pusher door structure is substantially the same size as the opening 117 and could pivot therethrough but for its engagement with tab 29 (FIG. 2). The pusher door is utilized for engaging single chunks of ice resting on the door structure 27 and, by manually pushing it against the bias of spring 36, forcing the chunks through the opening 17 thereby providing a shield or cover against flying chunks of crushed ice thrown upwards by the blades 21.

The pusher door 34 is provided with a pair of arms 38 extending from one side adjacent its hinge attachment having pins 37 projecting outwardly therefrom to lie in the path of the upper edge 40 and 41 of the respective sidewalls 31 and 39 of closure door structure 27. The innermost portion of the sidewalls are notched out as at 42 to accommodate the pin when the closure door 27 is fully opened to permit the free movement of pusher door 34. (See FIG. 3). However, as closure door 27 is pivoted inwardly edges 40 and 41 act as cams and pins 37 as cam followers forcing pusher door 34 to the position shown in FIG. 2 for closure of the unit 10.

It should now be apparent that there has been provided a new and useful appliance in the form of an ice crusher wherein a closure door structure 27 supports ice chunks can be individually pushed therefrom by a pusher door 34 to protect the user during this type of feeding operation and which door is generally maintained out of the way during operation of the machine to permit alternatively continuous chain feeding the ice chunks without impediment from the pusher door.

Since numerous changes may be made in the abovedescribed apparatus, and different embodiments of the invention may be made without departing from the spirit thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the foregoing description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What I claim is:

I. An ice crusher comprising:

a housing having an upper opening therein for insertion of ice to be crushed, a lower crushed ice collecting compartment, and an ice crushing chute for communication therebetween;

means in said chute for crushing ice;

drive means operatively connected to said crushing means;

closure means hingedly attached to said housing adjacent said opening for movement between an open and closed position and providing a shelf for supporting ice to be fed into said opening when in said open position, said closure means remaining in-said open position during ice crushing operation;

pusher means hingedly supported adjacent said opening for movement between a first position permitting access to said opening and a second position independently of said closure means when said closure means is in said open position; and, means normally biasing said pusher means to said first position, whereby said ice supported by said closure means can be pushed therefrom into said opening by manually moving said pusher means from said first position to said second position. 2. The ice crusher ofclaim 1 including trap door means hingedly mounted adjacent said opening within said chute and normally biased to a position coextensive with said opening.

3. The ice crusher of claim 2 wherein said pusher means is substantially coextensive with said opening to effectively closc said opening against crushed ice being thrown out by said crusher means when said pusher means is in said second position and said trap door means is opened inwardly by said ice passing through said opening.

4. The ice crusher according to claim 1 including means for moving said pusher means to said second position when said closure means is moved to said closed position.

5. The ice crusher according to claim 4 wherein said moving means comprises a camming surface on said closure means and a cam follower on said pusher means. 

1. An ice crusher comprising: a housing having an upper opening therein for insertion of ice to be crushed, a lower crushed ice collecting compartment, and an ice crushing chute for communication therebetween; means in said chute for crushing ice; drive means operatively connected to said crushing means; closure means hingedly attached to said housing adjacent said opening for movement between an open and closed position and providing a shelf for supporting ice to be fed into said opening when in said open position, said closure means remaining in said open position during ice crushing operation; pusher means hingedly supported adjacent said opening for movement between a first position permitting access to said opening and a second position independently of said closure means when said closure means is in said open position; and, means normally biasing said pusher means to said first position, whereby said ice supported by said closure means can be pushed therefrom into said opening by manually moving said pusher means from said first position to said second position.
 2. The ice crusher of claim 1 including trap door means hingedly mounted adjacent said opening within said chute and normally biased to a position coextensive with said opening.
 3. The ice crusher of claim 2 wherein said pusher means is substantially coextensive with said opening to effectively close said opening against crushed ice being thrown out by said crusher means when said pusher means is in said second position and said trap door means is opened inwardly by said ice passing through said opening.
 4. The ice crusher according to claim 1 including means for moving said pusher means to said second position when said closure means is moved to said closed position.
 5. The ice crusher according to claim 4 wherein said moving means comprises a camming surface on said closure means and a cam follower on said pusher means. 